Naruto: Naruto's Uchiha girlfriend is too tsundere

The four moved to the rooftop of the teaching building. The scene was as familiar as in the original work, with Kakashi casually leaning against the railing, while the three newly promoted genin sat side by side on the opposite steps.

"Well......" Kakashi scratched his unruly silver hair, "Anyway, let's all introduce ourselves and get to know each other first."

Sakura tilted her head in confusion upon hearing this. "Introduce yourself? But what should I say?" She tried to be polite and cooperative.

"Well..." Kakashi looked up at the sky with his one exposed dead fish eye, "Things I like, things I hate, my future dreams, my interests and stuff... that's about it."

Seeing Kakashi's uninspired appearance, Sakura felt a pang of helplessness. Naruto was right... he really was a lazy and perfunctory teacher.

She couldn't help but suggest, "Isn't that just the kind of introduction you get at the ninja academy? And shouldn't you introduce yourself first, teacher, and give us a demonstration?"

"Me?" Kakashi seemed to have just remembered this. He pointed to his headband with his finger and began his self-introduction.

"My name is Kakashi Hatake. As for things I like and dislike... well, nothing in particular. My future dreams?..."

He deliberately dragged out his words, building up the anticipation, before slowly saying, "...As for interests, I do have quite a few."

What is this guy doing?! In the end, all we know is his name! He didn't say anything else! He's completely fooling us!

In Sakura's inner world, another, more irritable side of her has begun to furiously overturn the table and roar.

But on the surface, she tried her best to maintain a polite yet awkward smile, her lips twitching slightly as she said, "Is...I see...hehe..."

Kakashi casually pointed at Naruto, "Alright, it's your turn now. Hmm... let's start with you."

"Oh!"

Naruto wore a bright smile. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto! My favorite thing is ramen, and as for things I hate... well, I don't think there's anything I particularly hate right now. As for my dream..."

"If there is any danger in the future, I want to have enough power to protect the people I care about."

Unlike children this age...

Kakashi silently gave his assessment in his mind. He then turned his gaze to Sakura.

"Okay, next one."

"Yes!"

Sakura immediately sat up straighter. "My name is Haruno Sakura! My favorite things are... red bean dumplings soup! And..." She secretly glanced quickly at Satsuki next to her.

"There's nothing I particularly hate! My dream is..." she said bravely, "to become a beautiful and powerful female ninja!"

Kakashi nodded noncommittally, his gaze finally settling on the black-haired girl sitting at the far end.

Uchiha Satsuki sensed the gaze, his expression remaining indifferent, but his tone was still relatively calm. "My name is Uchiha Satsuki. There are... many things I dislike."

For example, there were those who got in Naruto's way, the overly sweet snacks, and that woman who betrayed everything...

"The thing I like... is Naruto's cooking."

"My dream is..." She paused, glancing furtively at Naruto beside her. A faint blush crept onto her face, and she turned away awkwardly, her voice lowering. "...I can't say."

Naruto understood. It seemed that this time, because Satsuki had both parents and a warm family, she didn't see "revenge" as her dream and ambition, unlike in the original work...

Although she didn't say it out loud, the goal of "killing Uchiha Itachi" was definitely still on her list... even though Itachi was now under Shisui's watchful eye and living a secluded life in the underground base of the [Jin] organization.

His thoughts drifted back to that secret base in the Land of Hot Water, where Shisui, without fail, would go to that special solitary confinement room every day after completing his Anbu training and management duties, to accompany the blind girl renamed "Yuzu," patiently and repeatedly doing "ideological work" with her.

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(Thanks to Mr. Hao Shuai, who loves Thick-leaved Vine, for the gift! I've added another day for the fourth update.)

Chapter 128 Party

"Hmm, very good." Kakashi nodded in satisfaction. "You three are all quite unique! So, tomorrow morning at five o'clock, we'll begin our class's first mission—a survival drill."

"Wait a minute?" Sakura immediately sensed something was wrong and asked in confusion, "An exercise? How can a mission be an exercise? Besides, we've had many exercises at the Ninja Academy."

"Hmph hmph hmph hmph hmph..."

Just as Sakura finished speaking, Kakashi suddenly lowered his head and let out a series of low, sinister laughs.

The laughter sent a chill down Sakura's spine. "What...what's so funny?"

Naruto's expression turned somewhat strange as he looked at the scene before him.

You should know that in the original work, Kakashi was a typical aloof and sharp-tongued genius when he was young. Even when he occasionally showed a bit of human kindness, it was nine parts tsundere and one part spoiled!

At the same age, he is even more ruthless than the original character, Erzhuzi.

But how did he become this repressed, scheming, and mischievous person?

...All I can say is that Teacher Kai's influence is truly terrifying; he's practically turned an iceberg into a cunning and sly one.

Kakashi finally stopped his chilling laughter, raised his eyes, and swept his dead fish eyes over the three of them. His tone became "earnest" yet full of mockery.

“Those games of make-believe at school don’t count as real drills. My survival drill… is on a completely different level. By the way, let me tell you something interesting—” He paused deliberately, admiring the three of them, especially Sakura’s tense expression.

"If you fail, you are not qualified to be a ninja and will have to return to the ninja academy, and..."

"Out of the 27 graduates, only 9 were recognized as genin... In other words, this is an extremely difficult test with an elimination rate of over 66%. Therefore, you'd better participate in tomorrow's exercise with the mindset of 'going back to the ninja academy to start all over again'."

"Anyway, assemble at the training ground at five o'clock tomorrow morning! Remember to bring your ninja tools."

This statement about a "mortality rate as high as 66%" had a significant effect. Sakura felt her heart begin to race uncontrollably, and her palms started to sweat. No! Absolutely not!

She finally managed to be grouped with her idol, Satsuki, how could she be eliminated here?! She had to pass this test! No matter what!

Satsuki maintained her calm and indifferent expression on the surface, but her hands on her knees clenched slightly with tension and determination.

Kakashi's exaggerated elimination rate did put some pressure on her... But no matter what, she was determined to become a ninja alongside Naruto! They absolutely couldn't be separated!

Naruto, on the other hand, remained completely unmoved, and even felt a little like laughing.

Survival drill? Isn't it just about stealing bells? The same old routine… The question he's pondering now is, how much strength should he display tomorrow?

Would it be inappropriate to overdo it and defeat Kakashi outright? Would it scare him?

"Oh, right." Kakashi, who had already turned to leave, seemed to suddenly remember something and turned back to add, "Remember not to eat breakfast tomorrow morning... or you'll throw up."

After saying this "friendly reminder," Kakashi disappeared from the spot using the Body Flicker Technique.

"Huh? He's gone already?" Naruto looked at the empty spot, scratching his head with a hint of regret. "I was thinking of treating him to lunch..."

As soon as he finished speaking, he felt someone gently tug at his sleeve. Naruto turned around and saw Satsuki looking up at him with his big, dark eyes filled with anticipation and a hint of... obvious craving?

Why? Because today is an important day—the day Naruto and Satsuki agreed that Naruto would cook lunch himself! Satsuki had been looking forward to this meal since morning, and Kakashi's threats had not affected her appetite at all.

"Okay, let's go then. Today's lunch is all your favorite dishes." Naruto smiled, habitually reaching out to ruffle Satsuki's soft black hair. He did this affectionate gesture with perfect naturalness, and Satsuki squinted her eyes slightly, clearly enjoying it.

Sakura, watching this incredibly harmonious and intimate scene, was extremely envious and gave Satsuki a gentle head pat... She really wanted to try it too!

But did they agree to have lunch together? ...But back in the ninja academy, I did see them eating together every day at noon...

Watching her two future teammates seemingly leave her behind so naturally, and recalling Satsuki's decisive, even somewhat cold, rejection of her invitation, Sakura felt a wave of loss and loneliness wash over her. So, she still couldn't fit in...

However, Naruto noticed the subtle look of disappointment on Sakura's face. This behavior, which resembled "isolating" a teammate, made him feel uncomfortable.

After all, they'd be on the same team soon, and it wouldn't be good to make things too awkward. So he turned to Sakura and extended an invitation. "By the way, Sakura, why don't you come too? As future teammates, this is a good opportunity for us to get to know each other and also try my cooking."

"Huh? Really?!" Sakura was flattered when Naruto invited her, and her eyes lit up.

"Yes, of course it's true." Naruto said with a smile, his smile as open and honest as ever.

As for Satsuki standing next to Naruto... although his face remained expressionless, his inner thoughts suddenly became intense.

Huh?! This...this just sounds like a polite remark, doesn't it?! Although...judging from Naruto's way of thinking, he's definitely serious...but!

But you can probably tell that's just polite talk, right? A girl agreeing to have dinner at a boy's house so easily? There's a limit to being overly familiar! Have some sense of propriety!

You wouldn't actually agree, would you?!

"Thank you so much, Naruto-kun! Then I won't be polite!" Sakura happily and without hesitation agreed, a bright smile blooming on her face.

However, the very next second after she finished speaking—

Sakura suddenly shivered violently without warning. W-what's going on?! Why do I suddenly feel so cold?!

She instinctively hugged her arms and looked around warily, only to see Naruto smiling and... Uchiha Sasuke, who was still staring at her expressionlessly.

Is it just my imagination...?

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(Still updating at 3 PM)

Chapter 129 A Dangerous Visit

"excuse me……"

Sakura finished speaking somewhat awkwardly and cautiously stepped into Naruto's small apartment. She looked around curiously, a little surprised.

Is this the home of Naruto Uzumaki, the class's acknowledged genius? The room was simply furnished, but surprisingly clean and tidy, with items arranged in an orderly fashion, completely different from the mess she had imagined a boy living alone might have.

Logically speaking, being grouped with her idol Satsuki and the genius Naruto in her class, and being invited to her home, should have been an exciting and joyful thing for her.

But for some reason, starting just now, that faint, icy chill had returned, making her feel cold on her back, as if she were sitting on pins and needles, unable to relax at all.

"Don't be shy, make yourself at home." Naruto said with a smile, turning around to open the refrigerator, taking out a can of chilled red bean soup drink, and handing it to Sakura, "Here, I remember you like this, right?"

Then, he skillfully took out another box of strawberry milk—a drink that Satsuki had particularly loved for a long time and that she would drink almost every time she came.

"Ah, thank you!" Sakura quickly thanked him and took the red bean soup, but Naruto's enthusiasm did nothing to dispel the inexplicable chill.

She sat down next to Satsuki at Naruto's small dining table. Satsuki quietly took the strawberry milk, sipped it, her gaze seemingly fixed on the patterns on the table, neither looking at Sakura nor speaking.

The atmosphere became subtly silent and...frozen for a moment.

Sakura tried hard to find something to talk about to break the awkward silence, but every time she caught a glimpse of Satsuki's expressionless profile and the invisible pressure emanating from him, she felt as if something was blocking her throat, and she couldn't say a word.

"Wait a moment, the food will be ready soon."

From the kitchen, the sounds of cooking and Naruto's voice could be heard. Originally, Naruto's kitchen was in the living room, but since Satsuki started visiting often, Naruto moved the kitchen to another room, since the smoke from cooking was quite pungent.

To ease the suffocating silence and tension, Sakura's gaze involuntarily began to wander around the room, trying to find some decorations or items that could start a conversation.

Then, her gaze was drawn to something unusual next to the bedside table.

It was a carefully constructed little nest made of soft fabric and insulating materials, with some heating devices attached to the side that appeared to maintain the temperature. And in the center of this warm little nest, there was a...egg?

A giant egg, about the size of two footballs, pure white, with green circular patterns on it?

What is this? It's a huge egg... Is it the egg of some kind of summoning beast? Or is it some kind of special ninja tool?

Sakura's curiosity was instantly piqued, temporarily overshadowing the inexplicable chill. She instinctively wanted to stand up and get closer to examine the mysterious egg more closely.

However, just as she stepped off the chair and leaned forward—

A hand gripped her raised wrist tightly! The force was so great that she even felt a slight pain!

"Eek—!" Sakura was caught off guard and couldn't help but cry out in pain.

She turned her head in alarm and met Zuo Yue's dark eyes, which had somehow become incredibly cold. There was no warmth in those eyes.

"Don't touch that thing... no, to be precise, don't touch anything in this room. Understand?"

"I'm so sorry! I... I didn't mean to!"

Sakura was startled by the sudden, stern warning. She shakily sat back down in her chair, her heart pounding wildly.

Strangely, after being sternly warned, Sakura felt that Satsuki actually spoke to her on his own initiative, and her cheeks inexplicably became hot.

A silent and awkward atmosphere once again enveloped the small dining table.

After a while, just when Sakura thought the conversation was over, Satsuki's cold voice rang out again, still without any inflection.

"Sakura...right? From now on, we'll be teammates, right?"

“Yes…yes.” Sakura immediately straightened her back, not expecting Satsuki to speak up again.

“Well then, Sakura,” Satsuki slowly turned his head, his deep black eyes focusing on Sakura’s face for the first time in a truly meaningful way.

"Do you know what would happen to a ninja squad if one of the three genin in the squad unfortunately suffered some kind of 'accident,' such as... being killed, or suffering a 'serious injury' that prevented them from continuing the mission?"

"Huh? This..."

Sakura was taken aback by this sudden question. She tried hard to recall the relevant regulations she had seen in the Konoha Ninja Handbook.

"According to regulations... when a ninja team is on a mission, the basic formation must be one Jonin leading three Chunin or Genin. If... if any member of the team is missing for any reason, the entire team must immediately cease all missions until that member recovers or... a new member is added."

"...Tsk."

Satsuki let out a very soft click of her tongue. Clearly, Sakura's standard answer about the "missing team members" had not satisfied her.